Extinction rebellion staged a massive direct action in London for two weeks ending last Saturday involving 30,000 people, 3000 arrested around the world.
Thousands of rebels occupied central London from Trafalgar Square to Lambeth Bridge. Extinction Rebellion Birmingham (XR) joined rebels from the Midlands and East Anglia to create the “Love Zone” outside Downing Street and in St James's Park with a cacophony of banners, flags, meditation on the roadblocks and also workshops on global justice. Nonviolent action protests took place against oil companies, old and new media, government departments and airport expansion calling for them to ‘Tell the Truth’ about the Climate Emergency and take action now.
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This week Birmingham XR welcomed back over a hundred rebels from London, of which 30 were arrested, with support and wellbeing groups in the centre of Birmingham. By getting arrested rebels are showing how truly serious the climate emergency is and how inaction by the UK Government is leading them to raise the alarm that we must Act Now. Each arrestee has their own story to tell.
Sarah (52) a GP from Harborne and mother of three boys aged 12 – 22, was arrested four times. She remembers being involved in a protest action on a 13 foot high "da Vinci "wooden bridge, that Birmingham rebels spirited behind police lines and constructed overnight preventing the police retaking the love site.
She says what was most powerful was the way so many talented people gathered round, came together and showed they were willing to do something. "People are waking up because usually law-abiding citizens are driven to do such extraordinary things. I don't want to cause disruption for other people" she says," but my family have been doing this individually for 15 years and nothing has changed. I am not strong enough to do things that have no impact and this is something I can do"
Mina (25, an actor and performer from a mixed Asian and white background) and Vik (27, freelance graphic designer and swimming teacher from the Black Country with a British Indian background) set up the "Natural Health Service". This performing street theatre around Trafalgar Square provided free consultations for human beings from ‘planet doctors’, explaining how they could prevent the destruction of the planet.
Mina remembers walking into Trafalgar Square on the first days of the rebellion finding a sea of people with flags and banners covering the square and a young man locked to a hearse. She says "It was such a special moment; I felt we could be creating history”. 30,000 rebels including Mina and Vic took part in a huge march on Saturday 12th October from Marble Arch to Russell Square.
"Despite how the police tried to close us down, we are a community of people that believe so strongly we need environmental change…. and that left me feeling empowered", says Mina.
Vik was drawn to XR because no other movement is so diverse and inclusive in tackling climate change. Vik says "this is the most important issue for me, my family and my future. Everything else is so divisive and this affects everyone and brings everyone together".
Rob (retired, former Leyland worker and PHD ecologist from Erdington) was arrested in the first week of the two-week action at an oil conference protest. Rob says he is doing this because plants and animals are disappearing at an accelerating rate. Scientists state 200 species are going extinct every day. "I never thought I would find myself in the road in a puddle outside an oil conference but we have tried everything else and no one is listening. The government is watching while the world is going over the edge of the cliff."
Birmingham XR will be holding welcome meetings for people new to extinction rebellion in the coming weeks with over a hundred people expected at the first meeting alone. To join them check out the XR Birmingham Facebook page for more information.
www.facebook.com/extinctionrebellionbirmingham
For press enquiries please contact John Griffin 07538 155917 johndrewgriffin@yahoo.co.uk
About Extinction Rebellion
Time has almost entirely run out to address the ecological crisis which is upon us, including the 6th mass species extinction, global pollution, and abrupt climate change. Societal collapse and mass death are seen as inevitable if rapid action is not taken.
• Extinction Rebellion believes it is a citizen’s duty to rebel, using peaceful civil disobedience, when faced with criminal inactivity by their Government.
Extinction Rebellion’s Demands:
What emergency? | Extinction Rebellion in Numbers |This Is Not A Drill: An Extinction Rebellion Handbook.
